Machine for preparing food products



April 12, 1938.. A, FRONEY 2,114,020

MACHINE FOR PREPARING FOOD PRODUCTS Filed Jan. 9, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l2 Sheets-Sheet 2 M. A. FRONEY Filed Jan. 9, 1937 MACHINE FOR PREPARINGFOOD PRODUCTS April 12, was;

Patented Apr. 12, 1938 UNITED STATES MACHINE FOR PREPARING FOOD PRODUGTSMaynard A. Froney, Racine, Wis, assignor to Froney Electrocut 00.,Racine, Wis.

Application January 9,

1 Claim.

My invention refers to machines for preparing food products, and ithas-for its object to provide a simple, economical, and effectivepowerdriven machine, whereby a vegetable, or other substance, may beinitially sliced at predetermined thicknesses, and discharged as afinished product, or by simple, manual adjustment the slice may besevered into narrow or wide strips.

With the above and other objects in view, my invention consists incertain peculiarities of construction and combination of parts, as willbe hereinafter more fully set forth with reference to the drawings andsubsequently claimed.

' In the drawings:

Figure 1 represents a face view of a slicing machine having a coverswung open and broken away, with parts in section to more clearlyillustrate structural features.

Figure 2 is a sectional elevation of the same, the section beingindicated by line 22 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a detail sectional plan View showing the manual feedadjusting means, the section being indicated by the line 33 of Figure 2,and

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional detail, illustrating thecutting means, the section being indicated by line |t of Figure 1.

Referring by characters to the drawings, i represents a housing having acircular top shell 2, and 3 is a cover plate which is hingedly connectedto the circular portion 2, the cover being provided with an angularlydisposed feed hopper 4, which is indicated in dotted and full lines inFigure 1, its position being to one side of the center of the housingportion 2. The housing is provided with a bearing 5 for a rotary shaft6, which shaft is driven by a belt and pulley drive I from a motor shaft8, which receives its power from a motor (not shown) mounted in a jacket9, constituting part of the frame. This drive mechanism forms no part ofmy invention, and is protected bya shell H], which is spaced from andcarried by the housing I.

Secured to the shaft 6 is a cutting disc provided with radial dischargeopenings i2, through which the product is delivered after the same issliced. Alined with the radial discharge opening is a double-actingblade it, which blade is provided with a hub |3 that is splined to theshaft 6, and said hub extends outwardly through an opening in the coverplate, as best shown in Figure 2. Spring plates I4 are secured to thedisc II, and their free ends impinge against the back faces of the knifeI3, whereby said knife is 5 urged away from the disc to effectadjustment 1937, Serial No. 119,815

of the same. A knurled adjusting screw I5 is in threaded union withthe'shaft B, and when said screw is rotated inwardly in engagement withthe end of the hub l3, the knife will be adjusted more or less closelyto the face of the disc II in opposition to the springs, whereby thethickness of the material to be cut is controlled.

Pivoted to the side walls of the housing is a pair of chutes iii-46',said chutes being below the disc H and normally having their dischargepoints inclined toward the axis of the disc. Each chute has pivotedthereto a locking dog [1, which dogs project through slots in thehousing and are notched on their lower faces at I8 for selectedengagement with one of the slot walls.

As shown in Figure 1, the lefthand chute I6 is locked to the inner faceof the housing, and the chute it at the right is manually adjusted tofunction as a feeder, due to the fact that the dog if has been pushedinwardly and locked in the associated notch I8. As shown in Figure 2 ofthe drawings, the cover plate carries an angularly disposed sheet 19which serves as a guide for deflecting the cut product which isdischarged from either chute.

Mounted in the housing below the chute is a shaft 20, which shaft isdriven by the motor (not shown), and said shaft carries a closely nestedset of toothed cutting discs 2|, and a coarsely spaced set of cuttingdiscs 2|, whereby the product, which has been previously sliced, may becut into coarse or fine strips or lengths. As shown in Figure 1 of thedrawings, the trough it is set to discharge cut slices to the gang ofcoarsely set discs 2|, whereby the width of the strip is proportionatelycontrolled.

When the product is severed into strips by the gang of discs, they aredischarged against an adjusted valve member 22, and the guide fin 23, itbeing understood that this valve member serves to deflect the materialto be out against the gang of cutting discs 2| or 2|. The valve plate 22is hingedly connected to the rear wall of the housing, as indicated at24, there being a leaf spring associated with the hinge connection,which impinges against the valve plate, whereby it is yieldingly forcedaway from the gangs of cutting discs.

As best shown in Figures 2 and 3 of the drawings, the valve plate isopposed by spring urge through arms 25 secured to a rock shaft 26, thesame being mounted in bearings 21 that project from the housing. Anadjusting arm 28 is carried at one end of the shaft, whereby the arms 25are locked in a position to release the valve plate i (1 it,

22 from its working position shown in full lines in Figure 2, to adotted position shown in said view.

From the foregoing description it will be observed that all foodproducts, such for example as potatoes, carrots, beets, or the like,when fed through the hopper to the disc, will be sliced intopredetermined thicknesses, and as these slices drop by. gravity, theyare deflected to the coarsely spaced set of cutting discs 2!, wherebysaid slice is severed into strips.

If it is desired to produce from the strip what may be termedshoe-strings, by manual control the chute i8 is withdrawn from itsfunctioning position, and the disc I6 is adjusted to its work, ingposition, whereby the sliced material is thrown or deflected upon theclosely nested gang of cutting discs 2|, it being understood that theValve plate in its functioning position, as shown in Figure 2, will holdthe slice against the cutting gang of discs as it travels downwardly andis discharged through the narrow throat. Should it be desired simply todischarge the slice of material without-cutting them into strips,obviously the mechanism controlling the valve 22 is shifted, whereby thearms 25 will be free to permit the spring-controlled valve member tofunction and open the throat, as indicated in dotted lines, Figure 1.Thus, the sliced material will be discharged without further cutting.

While I have shown and described one specific arrangement of myinvention, it is understood that I may vary the structural features ofthe same within the scope of the claim.

I claim:

A cutting apparatus for food products comprising a housing, a cuttingdisc rotatably mounted therein provided with a radially disposed knife,chutes hingedly connected to the housing below the disc, means formanually and selectively adjusting the chutes into Working position,means for locking said chutes in their working or idle positions, a gangof coarsely nested knives mounted in position below the chutes, a valvemember associated with the gang of knives in pivotal union with thehousing, a spring for urging the valve away from the faces of the gangsof cutting discs, and a rock shaft having arms for selectively lookingor freeing thevalve from its cutting position with relation to the gangsof knives.

MAYNARD A. FRONEY.

